a or Abu Musa);
in 1992, the dispute over Abu Musa and the Tunb islands became more
acute when Iran unilaterally tried to control the entry of third
country nationals into the UAE portion of Abu Musa island, Tehran
subsequently backed off in the face of significant diplomatic support
for the UAE in the region

Climate: desert; cooler in eastern mountains

Terrain: flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of
vast desert wasteland; mountains in east

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 2%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 98%

Irrigated land: 50 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: lack of natural freshwater resources being overcome by
desalination plants; desertification; beach pollution from oil spills
natural hazards: frequent sand and dust storms
international agreements: party to - Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not
ratified - Biodiversity, Law of the Sea

Note: strategic location along southern approaches to Strait of
Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil

@United Arab Emirates:People

Population: 2,924,594 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 35% (female 499,559; male 521,415)
15-64 years: 64% (female 643,819; male 1,229,730)
65 years and over: 1% (female 10,296; male 19,775) (July 1995 est.)

Population growth rate: 4.55% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 27.02 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death rate: 3.03 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net migration rate: 21.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 21 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.51 years
male: 70.42 years
female: 74.71 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.53 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Emirian(s)
adjective: Emirian

Ethnic divisions: Emirian 19%, other Arab 23%, South Asian 50%, other
expatriates (includes Westerners and East Asians) 8% (1982)
note: less than 20% are UAE citizens (1982)

Religions: Muslim 96% (Shi'a 16%), Christian, Hindu, and other 4%

Languages: Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write but definition of
literary not available (1985)
total population: 71%
male: 72%
female: 69%

Labor force: 580,000 (1986 es